Hello,
I'm brand new to this, having just recently been diagnosed with stage 2 Oral SCC. Not sure whether this is the best place to post just to say hello.
I'm 38 yr old male and very active. For about seven years I had battled with erosive oral lichen planus. For anybody who hasn't heard of that, basically it's an auto-immune thing they have no cure for and it just eats away at the tissues of the tongue and mouth. I'd had three previous biopsies done and they were all clear. The condition would come and go in 'waves', getting better, then worse, then better.
Last summer it got pretty bad and into the fall/winter it was worse than I'd ever had it. In February I went back in and they did another biopsy - this time, bad news.
Further scans and diagnosis revealed I had a 4cm x 2cm x 2cm tumor in the base of my tongue, it had not yet gotten into my lymph nodes and everything else looked ok.
My doc determined that the tumor is too big to remove surgically (with a margin) without doing significant damage to my ability to speak, swallow, etc.
So, I am scheduled to start radiation and chemo in about a week. I had a PEG tube installed last week, with some complications. It became infected and I wound up in the ER over the weekend in intense pain. Three shots of morphine and I was still crying for my mama. They put me on heavy antibiotics and things are now improving about 48 hrs later.
I hate to bring that up and scare anybody about the PEG tube. I know it's typically an easy thing and I'd never even heard of anybody having trouble. I did everything for after-care they told me too, so who knows. I could have been pysically pre-disposed to an infection. I did have a slight fever the day of 'install' (99.1F) but they did it anyhow.

Next week I am scheduled to begin radiation and chemo. I met my radiology oncologist last week and am meeting my medical oncologist tomorrow. I feel confident that I am in capable, skilled hands at an excellent facility. Still I find myself pretty apprehensive about what's coming.

They want to try me with the Amifostine. I understand the benefits but it sure sounds like people struggle with it. I will give it my best to tolerate it.

I've been reading through the posts and it sounds like most of you have already gone down the road I'm about to - or similar ones. It's amazing how much you learn in the weeks following those words, "you have cancer". I've read everything I can get my hands on - medical info, etc. But I have found the personal stories on this site, from people who have actually had oral cancer, to be the most informative. Any words of widsom for somebody who's only a week away from beginning treatments would be appreciated.

Thanks for letting me join the forum.

-Steve